Last Saturday, we did the 10km Firgrove Challenge. Coach Sean had me working on speed over the last few weeks and this race was the final test.
For some reason, shorter races like a 10km make me more nervous than longer ones. But at least my Garmin seemed to be optimistic!
Unlike the last race, this one was perfectly organized. Our race started at 5.55am, ten minutes after the 15km runners had started.
We stood in our starting block and the elite runners were in front of us. I saw that one of the elite runners, a tall, blonde woman, was in my age group.
That must be Julie. I’ve heard a lot about her. She’s one of the strongest female runners in the 50 – 59 age group in Cape Town. A true legend. I was awe-struck.
The gun went off and we were on our way.
I focused on my own race and settled in. Julie was already far ahead. However, after a few minutes, I noticed that I was gradually closing in on her. After about 1.5 kilometres, I was close enough to tuck in behind her. I stayed there for a while, wondering what I should do.
Should I risk it and challenge her by overtaking? Would I be able to hold up if she stepped up the pace? Or should I play safe and just stay behind her?
I decided to be reckless and go for it. About a quarter into the race, I overtook Julie.
“You’re breaking out early!” she remarked.
“Honestly, I have no idea what I’m doing”, I said. And I meant it.
“You’re doing well”, she kindly said. “Just keep it up!”
The two of us stormed on. People were cheering from the sidelines “Go, ladies!”. Julie responded by yelling back “Age is just a number!”. This was fun!
At kilometre 6, someone shouted, “You are the 2nd and the 3rd ladies!”
Oh, that was unexpected! However, as encouraging as that was, I was now struggling. I was paying the price for taking the risk.
During a slight uphill, Julie finally overtook me. I glanced across at her. She looked strong, even if she was breathing as heavily as I was.
I stuck to her heels, barely hanging on. Then, at kilometre 8, a young woman, Lisa, suddenly came up from behind and overtook us. However, at this point, Julie managed to accelerate and hang on to her. It was impressive to watch from behind. How did Julie manage to dig even deeper?!
The gap between me and Julie was now widening. I was praying for that finish line to come.
Finally, all three of us passed over the line. Lisa was 2nd woman, Julie was 3rd and I was 4th (out of 544 women). Julie and I congratulated each other – we were so proud that two ladies over 55 managed to be in the top four women!
Kai came in just a moment later in 47:26 as 8th in his age group (37th out of 386 men).
It was a fabulous race day!
- What makes you more nervous – long or short races?
- Are you a risk-taker? Or do you prefer to play it safe?
I’m joining Runs with Pugs and The Running Teacher’s link-up, Tuesday Topics. I’m also joining Runner’s Roundup with Mile By Mile, Coach Debbie Runs, Confessions of a Mother Runner and Runs with Pugs.
Yeah , Yeah, Yeah, ich hätte nichts anderes von dir erwartet ! Super geschlagen, liebe Catrina, es hat sich bis dato alles gelohnt, spannend, deinen ehrgeizigen Aktivitäten zu folgen !! Gratulation !! Und wieder eine strahlende Catrina auf dem Treppchen, tolle Platzierung !!!!
Kurze Distanzen habe ich nie gemocht, kein Wunder, wenn ich dann überhaupt keine mehr gelaufen bin !! Risk-Taker ?? Kommt darauf an, auch schon probiert, aber im Grunde bin ich ein Safe-Player !!
Nochmals ❤-lichen Glückwunsch von der stürmischen, regnerischen Ostsee, liebe Catrina !!💐🏆
Danke dir, liebe Margitta!
Die zweite Hälfte des Laufs fühlte sich sehr anstrengend an. Die Beine und die Lunge protestierten und wollten, dass ich mich sofort an den Strassenrand stelle. Der Kopf verhandelte dann mit dem Körper, weiter zu machen. Auf alle Fälle war ich sehr froh, endlich im Ziel zu sein!
Ich stimme dir zu, ich empfinde kurze Distanzen als viel anstrengender als lange Läufe. Aber leider müssen die doofen, kurzen Läufe auch mal sein.
Safe ist gut! Bei Läufen und auch sonst im Leben.
Danke dir – natürlich weiss ich, dass du trotz dem stürmischen Wetter rausgehen wirst. Geniesse es!
Liebe Catrina,
wow, was für ein Rennen und was für eine super Zeit! Herzliche Glückwünsche, auch an Kai natürlich!
Der Verlauf war wirklich spannend! Richtig gemacht, wenn die Gelegenheit sich so bietet, einfach mal was ausprobieren! Mich hätte das genauso gereizt und ich bin auch immer (natürlich in hinteren Beriechen des Feldes) gefährdet, mich an solche ins Auge stechenden Konkurrentinnen anzuhängen und zu versuchen, zu überholen. Das ist ja gerade der Reiz beim Rennen.
Bei 10’er Rennen bin ich kaum nervös, je länger die Distanz, umso nervöser. Und klar, wenn man ins Risiko geht, kann es schief gehen – oder prima enden. Beides schon erlebt 🙂
Liebe Grüße und weiter fleißiges Training!
Elke
Danke dir, liebe Elke!
Stimmt! Bei mir sind solche kleinen Duelle meist auch im hinteren Feld – irgendwo findet man immer eine passende Herausforderung. Und es macht Spass, wenn die andere Person die Challenge annimmt und Gutzi gibt.
Das ist interessant, dass dich die längeren Distanzen nervöser machen, kann ich aber nachvollziehen. Die Unbekannten sind in einem längeren Lauf grösser (Magen, Verletzungen u.ä.). Ich mag die hohe Cardio-Belastung von einem kurzen Lauf nicht, dafür ist es schneller vorbei!
Liebe Grüsse zurück – schon wieder ein paar Slots gemacht?
Natürlich, no rest…..
WOW Catrina! It’s just amazing how fast you are! Congrats on that speedy finish!!!
PS It’s just rude that they make racers wear their ages on their jerseys!!! :p
Thank you very much, Wendy! It was a tough race – it felt like a never-ending HIIT session!
I agree!! Totally rude! I can’t wait until I’m 85, then I’ll wear it with pride!
Ugh. On advertising your age. I color my hair so runners do think I’m younger. lol.
Yes. Short races are scary. I feel like I should run fast. Longer ones I think just finishing is ok.
Congrats on strong race.
Haha! You even have to wear the age tag on your BACK, so that people can see how old you are from behind. They’re no hiding!
That’s exactly how I feel about longer ones – it’s fine to just finish without all the stress.
Thanks, Darlene! You would have won in your age group!
What an exciting race, I was out of breath just reading about it! Congratulations for the amazing result!
I would say I’m probably more a “play it safe” -kind of person, especially if the end-result matters to me a lot. For example, if I _really_ wanted to finish a race, I don’t think I would risk it in anyway. If, however, I was fine with maybe not finishing the race (or would have to walk) I would dare to take a risk.
Thank you, Riitta! Then we were both out of breath!
That’s a very wise approach to a race (and life in general)!
If you’ve invested a lot into the preparation of a race, you don’t want to drop out because of a silly decision. My legs and my lungs wanted me to drop out so badly! It’s only the thought of a chai latte at the end that kept me going (I REALLY enjoyed that chai!)
Ein super Rennen hast du da hingelegt, vierter Platz in so einem Umfeld, klasse, Glückwunsch!! Und auch schön dass es diesmal ein gut organisiertes Rennen war.
Bei kurzen Rennen von Anfang an immer alles geben, Volldampf, keine Gnade! Entweder man ist ausreichend trainiert (bist du) oder versagt jämmerlich. Auch das gehört dazu. Ich such mir auch manchmal einen schnellen Hasen um den dann im besten Falle auf den letzten Metern noch abzukochen, genau das ist doch der Reiz an kurzen schnellen Rennen.
Gar keine Frage, da steigt natürlich auch die Nervosität vorab, aber die verpufft beim Startschuss, danach wird nur noch Adrenalin rausgehämmert. Bei langen Rennen bin ich zwar auch etwas nervös, aber nur weil ich mich auf die Strecke freue. Ein ganz anderes Setting, Energie einteilen, Spaß haben, den Lauf geniessen.
Weiter so, Coach Sean macht grade alles richtig 🙂
Danke dir, Oliver! Ich dachte, da wären noch viel mehr Frauen vor uns. Ich war richtig überrascht mit diesem vierten Platz.
Das Rennen war super organisiert, diesmal auch mit Timing Chips. Allerdings nur mit einer Zielmatte, aber das reichte völlig.
Genau!! Raushauen, was das Zeug hergibt. Die schnellen Hasen, die überall im Feld herumhoppeln muss man nutzen! Es wäre interessant gewesen, was du bei den Herren rausgeholt hättest. Du hättest das Feld wohl ordentlich aufgemischt!
Stimmt! Bei den langen – in deinem Falle Ultras – muss man ganz anders rangehen. Schmerzen sind zwar auch dabei, aber anders… eher muskulärer Art. Man befindet sich zumindest nicht im roten Schnappatmungs-Bereich.
Coach Sean ist gerade mächtig gefordert… seine Frau bekommt nächste Woche ein Baby. Wenigstens ist mein Plan für Februar schon geschrieben, ha!
Yeah, a race is like a never-ending HIT if you are wanting to podium.🏃♀️💨💨 Otherwise it could just be like an easy-going run.🏃♀️ Either are fine! There are no Olympic spots up for grabs!😅💦
That said, it is fun to actually fight for a finish position w another racer during the entire run. It becomes a cat & mouse game. Who is fittest to climb that hill? Are you running tangentially? Are you keeping within striking distance when you can turn on your turbo? Or perhaps will you take the lead at a fast pace to discourage any challenger?🤔
All the workouts & runs prepare you for whatever might happen!
I like to break down any race long or short into fragments, opening, body & conclusion. It is important to know what part of the race you are in to evaluate your pace. Only you know how you are feeling & what kind of kick you have in you at a given time.
Opening is basically to find the rhythm & let your body systems adjust to the running. The body can be further broken down to how you want, but it is important to have a plan before hand and not just wing it. The ultimate goal of the body is to place you in striking distance based on how you know you can respond. You want to be close to the leaders before you reach the conclusion.
The conclusion is the final distance. How far that is depends on your fitness. In a HM it could be the last 2 km. That is when you pass & fight to be passed. You leave all out on the course. This is where most runners are just hanging on, but where the HIT pays out as you fly pass them as you already know how to be comfortable w being uncomfortable! You have that confidence to make your move and follow through to the finish & claim victory🌞
Well that is the plan! 😅💦
Exactly! You have to suffer in a race with you want the podium! I was very tempted to take it slower, but then I do like a good challenge. There’s not many opportunities to have a battle with someone in the same age group.
I wish I had a bit more kick in those last two kilometres. I remember overtaking Lisa in kilometre 1(!). I subsequently forgot about her and was mighty surprised when she came up from behind. She had an excellent race strategy and executed it perfectly.
Reading you race break-down, I need to think more about strategy. I usually just run by feel but that’s not good enough.
I have a half-marathon coming up in two weeks (18.2.) and I want to divide it into smaller sections like you suggest. It has a few hills in it, so I will need to consider that as well. I hope I can have a strong finish in those last 2km, where most runners are just hanging on! Let’s see.
It’s a constant learning curve, and every race teaches you something!
Catrina
On your long runs, you may want to kick it up for the last 2 kms to simulate race conditions. If you do it enough times, it will feel natural for you and I can promise, you will be so much stronger. Why cruise over the finish? Give the fans something to cheer about. 🎊
I remember my last in-person HM before #covid, I increased my pace every km for the last 3 km & the last km was my fastest of the race. I passed hundreds of runners as well (Those who were in the coral before me). I think you are well equipped to do the same! 🏃♀️💨💨💨
Good luck in your HM prep. 🌞
Oh, wow! The last kilometre being the fastest?! That’s my dream! And passing hundreds of other runners at the very end must feel so energizing!
That’s a good idea with the fast finish on my long run. I don’t feel like doing that at all – but all the more reason to do it! It makes sense, both mentally and physically. Thanks for the tip, Yves!
Wow, I’m impressed!!! And I feel proud (as an over-55-year-old-woman) that you guys did so well. And, it’s encouraging- you don’t have to get slow as you age (although I did… but that’s another story.)
Yes, shorter races scare me as well, and that’s why I haven’t done one in a long time ; )
That’s so nice of you to say that, Jenny! Exactly, there’s no need to slow down.
One guy on our running club chat said “the ladies veterans are a tough bunch and not for sissies”. We’re tough cookies! 🙂
Good luck with your upcoming ultra – you will do extremely well!
Liebe Catrina,
vielen Dank für den Bericht, den ich für sehr gelungen halte!!! 🙂 Ich habe ihn gerne gelesen und mit Spannung verfolgt. … und dann brauchst du deine Leistung nicht unter den Scheffel zu stellen, denn mit der Zeit kannst du (fast immer) gut bestehen … du wllst ja bei keinem Meisterschaftsrennen mithalten! – Ich wäre momentan froh, wenn ich mit Kai mitkäme! 😉
Es war auf jeden Fall eine sehr gute Standortbestimmung und du hast sie bravourös bestanden! Auch zwischendurch mal was riskieren, Tempo anziehen und dann beißen gehört dazu! 😉 Gut dass die Uhr eine noch bessere Zeit prognostiziert, so weißt du, dass das Ende der Fahnenstande noch nicht erreicht ist!
Herzlichen Glückwunsch zu diesen super Platzierungen: 2. AK und 4. gesamt!!!
Früher hat mich jedes Rennen in eine gute Spannung versetzt, ich war eigentlich immer nervös, was mich aber zum Glück nie gehemmt hat! – Später und bei den (Gebirgs)Ultras war es eine unbändige Vorfreude, die mir Adrenalinstöße ‘geschenkt’ hat!
Ich bin fast immer risikoreich los, oder habe bei längeren Läufen (bis Marathon) zwischendrin etwas versucht. Bei Marathons hat es meist nicht geklappt das angeschlagene Tempo zu halten. – Bei den kurzen 10ern bin ich zwar auch schnell los, da ich aber auch im Rennen einige Zeit brauchte, um reinzukommen, hab ich so manches Mal ab 7 immer noch einige überholen können. Das war aber zu Zeiten, als ich noch ein bisschen schneller 😛 laufen konnte! – Bei den Ultras war ich gereift und bin meist recht langsam los! 😆
Du bist in einer guten Form, bleib dran und gesund!
Liebe Grüße Manfred
Danke dir, lieber Manfred!
Solche Berichte sind einfach zu schreiben, weil ich selbst sehr gespannt war, wie das Duell mit Julie ausgehen würde. Es hat Spass gemacht, sie herauszufordern… naja, zumindest, als der Lauf vorbei war, ha!
Zu deinen besten Zeiten hättest du wohl für diese Strecke um die 30 Minuten gebraucht. Heute wärst du in deiner AK vermutlich immer noch vorne mit dabei!
Ich bin froh, dass es gut gelaufen ist. Es war zwar keine 10km-Bestzeit, aber die Strecke war auch ein kleines bisschen hügelig im zweiten Teil. Für mich war wichtig, dass ich nicht allzu weit entfernt von Julie ins Ziel komme.
Eine gute Nervosität, also! Sehr schön. Das kann ich mir vorstellen, dass du dich bei den Gebirgsultras einfach nur darauf gefreut hast. Diese Art von Läufen kann man auch besser geniessen, obwohl es da SEHR harte Momente gibt. Viele Längen- und Höhenmeter, die deine letzte und kleinste Muskelfaser testen.
Ha, das dachte ich mir, dass du auch eher risikoreich unterwegs bist! Dass du bei KM 7 noch Gas geben konntest im 10er zeigt, dass du die Strategie perfekt beherrscht hast, wenn vielleicht auch nicht bewusst geplant. Bei den Ultras hast du aber bestimmt auch noch jede Menge Leute im letzten Viertel überholt, oder?
Danke dir! Ich hoffe, dass es so weiter geht und dass nichts dazwischen kommt. Im Sinne von deinem Blog bin ich sehr dankbar, dass es gerade gut läuft.
Liebe Grüsse aus dem abendlichen Cape Town!
Absolutely amazing! You are just so inspiring and I love your attitude and positivity.
Shorter races fill me with anxiety. I’m built for longer distances. I also play it so very safe. But no guts, no glory! You rocked it out there!
Thank you so much, Jenn!
I admire how you keep on doing 5Ks despite the anxiety! Sometimes it better to play it safe, especially with longer races. It’s better to see the finish line than having to give up in the middle of a race.
Wow you are crushing it these days! Pretty impressive at any age IMO. I hated when they used to write our age on our calf for triathlon races years ago when I did them. I would dislike it even more now!
It was a great race! The age tags are so annoying – there’s no way to hide your age. We even have to wear it on the back, just to make sure that everyone can see how old you are!
Congrats! I feel like there should be an element of risk in every race. Sure you could have paced yourself and still made the top 10, but how much more fun to chase the #2 spot!
Absolutely! It was much more fun that way. I loved how Juli responded – such a good sport!
Amazing job! Short races can be so hard and they definitely make me nervous. I have a hard time pacing 5ks and 10ks. They are short enough that you need to run pretty fast the whole time, which means it will probably start hurting early! You all did so great!
Exactly! Those short races feel like very long HIIT sessions – so exhausting!
My coach got back to me today. Based on my heart rate during that race, he says it looks like I wasn’t putting a lot of effort into it. I told him I nearly died out there, ha!
Btw, his wife gave birth to a baby girl on the day of the race. So exciting!
Congratulations! That was a very exciting description of the race! So awesome that two women in their 50s were in the top 4! I definitely used to fear a fast 5k more than a marathon. Running fast hurts! 🤣
Thank you, Debbie! It was a rare racing moment!
Exactly! I think I fear the 5k even more than a 10k. In 10 days I have a half-marathon coming up, I don’t feel nervous about that one at all!
What’s the point of having your age broadcasted on your shirt? I don’t get it. Congrats on a great race! You continue to inspire me when your races and how well you do in them. Congrats again!
The age tag is required in South African races if you are competing. I once didn’t wear the age tag on the back and I was disqualified from the ranking. The idea is that other competitors in your age group know by whom they have just been passed and they can then take up the challenge (or not). For example, Julie knew that I was in her age group – this adds some extra spice to a challenge between two runners!
Thanks, Zenaida!
Congrats on the 4th place overall female and for having the guts to go for it! What an impressive time you ran and I love that Julie was such a great sport.
Julie was great fun! She’s an amazing runner – I was so inspired by her.
Thanks very much Debbie! I hope to keep it up as long as my body lets me.
How fun and fantastic! You are a very strong runner yourself!
I think shorter races are harder because I think I should run them faster!
Ha, precisely, Coco! I feel so much pressure at those shorter races!
I have a half marathon coming up next week – and I’m not nervous about that one at all.
I hope your hammie is behaving!
Wow, wow, Catrina! What a race. That must have been exhilarating! Congratulations.
I was so glad when it was over! But it was super exciting to have a little battle.
Liebe Catrina,
super gemacht!
Wenn du dich nicht so gut gefühlt hättest, wärest du vermutlich defensiver gelaufen und hättest dich von Julie ziehen lassen. So hast du hoch gepokert und dein Risiko hat sich gelohnt! Was für eine super Zeit, ich gratuliere dir ganz herzlich!!
Danke dir, liebe Doris! Genau, ich hatte mich anfangs gut gefühlt, aber mich dann doch etwas übernommen. Aber es war trotzdem einen Versuch wert!
Als nächstes steht für nächsten Samstag ein Halbmarathon an. Mal sehen, ob ich meine Energie etwas besser einteilen kann. 🙂
Wow Catrina! Huge congrats on an amazing job! I remember being fairly new to 10ks and having two women suddenly overtake me in the final stretch. That experience taught me to be more strategic and save a little something for a stronger finish. What a great sport Julie was!
Thanks, Marcia!
You mentioned an excellent point! I need to be a lot more strategic about my races. I have a half-marathon coming up this Sunday and I have to think exactly what I’m going to do in which kilometre so that I don’t crash and burn!
Wow, that was such an incredibly strong race, Catrina. Congratulations. Fourth out of 544 women is so incredible. Don’t really run road 10k’s much anymore. The last one was around 6 or 7 years ago. There was one out and back for the 5k and two out’s and back for the 10k. The 5k and 10k all started at the same time. There was a lady from work who had never run a race before, so I accompanied her on the 5k. She finished last, and I was so proud of her. I went out again to complete my 10k and I caught up to what turned out to be the last place runner about a half a kilometer into my 2nd out and back. She was ready to drop out. I talked her out of it and ran with her to the finish. I finished last. She finished 2 seconds ahead of me. She was so thrilled to finish. Her family were at the finish line cheering her on. So I guess I can say I’m very much of a play-it-safe runner. Though I’ve never done it, sometime I might consider running a 10k and go all out. And see where I stand.
Well, I think you deserve a medal as the most supportive runner on the course!
Helping out a newbie 5k runner to finish AND THEN to back on the course to help a struggling 10k runner is so amazing and inspiring!! Well done, Carl!
Running a race can be quite a egocentric affair: we are focused on our time and how well we do – but there are many runners out there who need support. An encouraging word and a helping hand can go a long way to motivate someone to finish a race. Thank you for being there and doing that for these runners. I’m sure it’s a race experience they will never forget!! I love it!
First of all congratulations on the result (over all and a.g.) and the finish time. You are very fast and well prepared even on the long distances, so you don’t have any problem competing with anyone and adopting the best tactics to overtake the other runners.
I don’t find that the age on the shirt is wrong because on this way we can know who the opponents are in our age group.
And then, as far as I’m concerned, I’m happy to be old and race (unfortunately …. slowly) again.
Thank you so much, Stefano. That gives me confidence for the upcoming race this Sunday, which I’m very nervous about. It’s a half-marathon, flat and fast. I’ll have to think of a good strategy that I don’t let myself get carried along too much.
Yes, that’s exactly the reasoning of the age tag. I find it very helpful during a race – I don’t need to guess whether another runner is in my age group or not.
But you are running and racing! How many in your age group don’t do that anymore? You can be very proud of your fitness!